Help is at hand if you meet someone in distress. All you need to do is go to the psychological first aid section of the new Red Cross Red Crescent first aid app.
Through this app, you can have access to life-saving First Aid and Psychological First Aid tools at all hours. The app gives instant access to critical information for handling the most common first aid emergencies and safety tips for crisis situations including a module on Psychological First Aid (PFA), provided by the PS Centre MHPSS Technical Advisors, Ea Suzanne Askasha and Guleed Dualeh.
“Help is at hand if you meet someone in distress. All you need to do is go to the psychological first aid section of the new Red Cross Red Crescent first aid app. When coming across someone who has lost a near and dear the app guides you on what to do and say. If confronted with a friend who experiences a panic attack, help is in the app. How to support children is another sub-topic – so, in short, psychological first aid is in your pocket if the first aid app is on your phone.” (Ea Suzanne Akasha).
Significantly, the First Aid app contains a module on PFA, since combining first aid and PFA is beneficial for several reasons such as Comprehensive care for physical and emotional needs; Acknowledging the connection between physical and mental health; Reducing the stigma around mental health; Enhances empathy and compassion in responders; Increases efficiency in providing care; Improves disaster response by addressing trauma; Builds resilience in responders; and make support skills more versatile and applicable in various settings. In summary, it ensures a holistic approach to helping individuals in crisis, considering both their physical and emotional well-being.
The information in the app is presented as interactive quizzes and simple step-by-step everyday first aid scenarios, and include information on the below:
- Engaging and active learning, allowing you to see and track your progress, build your knowledge, and increase confidence in your skills and ability to assist in emergencies.
- Safety tips including water safety and road safety to help you prepare for emergencies.
- Preloaded content means you have access to all information at any time, even without a cellular or WiFi connection.
- Interactive quizzes allow you to earn badges that you can share with your friends and share your lifesaving knowledge.
- Improved multi-lingual capability regardless of the user’s location.
- Linkages to your local Red Cross or Red Crescent on-site and online training.
- Fully integrated with emergency numbers (such as 911, 999, 112, and others) so you can call for help from the app at any time, even while traveling across borders.
For questions regarding the PFA module, please reach out to psychosocial.centre@ifrc.org.
